The present invention relates to a clutch disc assembly suitable for an automobile and other vehicle for an industrial use and an agricultural use.
In a conventional clutch disc, a clutch plate connected to a friction facing has a slightly larger diameter than a retaining plate and a flange of an output hub connected to an output shaft, and rivets are fixed to the radially outer portion of the clutch plate which protrudes radially beyond the outer peripheries of the retaining plate and the hub flange. Said rivets are provided for correcting unbalance of an inertial mass and a moment of inertia of the disc around the output shaft.
However, the clutch discs have been required to be small in sizes and weight. And, if the diameter of the clutch plate is reduced to satisfy the above, it becomes difficult to provide at the outer peripheral portion with a space to which the rivets for correcting the unbalance are fixed. Further, if the diameter of the clutch plate is reduced, the outer peripheral portion of the clutch plate axially overlaps to the outer peripheral portions of the hub and the retaining plate. In this case, if the rivets for correcting the unbalance are fixed to the outer peripheral portion of the clutch plate, the rivets may contact the outer peripheral portion of the hub flange. Moreover, if the diameter of the clutch plate is reduced, a distance or a radius between the outer peripheral portion of the clutch plate and the output shaft is also reduced. Therefore, the rivets fixed to the outer peripheral portion should be heavy for correcting the unbalance, which increases the weight of the disc.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved disc assembly, overcoming the above-noted disadvantages.
The essence of the invention is to fix a balancer rivet to a plate disposed at a radially outer portion of a disc for supporting a friction facing.
Other and further objects, features and advantages of the invention will appear more fully from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the invention.